Immanuel Messenger Immanuel Lutheran Church 122 East 88th Street, New York, NY 10128

Eighty-eighth Street and Lexington Avenue, Manhattan www.immanuelnyc.org

The Rev. Gregory P. Fryer, Pastor (212) 289-8128, church phone Email: gpfryer@gmail.com (212) 828-3665, church fax

October 2012

A Word from the Pastor

Reformation Sunday 11 a.m. Sunday, October 28, 2012

1Make a joyful noise unto God, all ye lands: 2Sing forth the honour of his name: make his praise glorious. (Psalm 66:1-2, KJV)

Here at Immanuel, we love to make a joyful noise unto God on Reformation Sunday. We sing the Lutheran Chorale Mass, with Gwen and the Choir thrilling us with their music. We have brass and tympani, led by our own Jim Miller on trumpet and cornetto, accompanying the many voices in our choir balcony. It is always fun to see what the music is on Reformation Sunday! We have been blessed - nigh spoiled - over the years to have extraordinary preachers for Reformation Sunday. Especially I am thinking of our longtime and esteemed Pastoral Associate Rev. Dr. David Lotz. It was an annual treat for us, year by year for many of the twenty years I have been here, to have Pastor Lotz take the sacred desk on Reformation Sunday. And when he could not do it, then we have enjoyed other prestigious preachers that festival day, including theologians Robert W. Jenson and David S. Yeago, and ecumenical guests, including Rev. Dr. James Massa, Executive Director for the Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. This year, I will be the preacher, God willing. Partly this is because I want to join in the fun of preaching on Reformation Sunday. The more substantial reasons are that Pastor Lotz cannot be present with us this year, and that I want to save esteemed preachers like him for next year, Immanuel’s 150th anniversary.

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So, I mean to lend my hand this time to telling the tale of Martin Luther and to praising the God he loved with such devotion, passion, and gifts of the Holy Spirit. Let me share one of Luther’s famous quotes with you, to suggest something of the spirit of the man and of his joy in the gospel. This is Luther’s saying about “sin boldly.” It is from a 1521 letter to his younger colleague Philip Melanchthon. Luther certainly was not encouraging Melanchthon to sin. We should never aim to sin! Rather, Luther was urging Melanchthon to strive mightily for the good of God’s kingdom, even if he risked being wrong, even if he risked being guilty of sin and of falling short of the glory of God. Here is the famous quote:

If you are a preacher of grace, then preach a true and not a fictitious grace; if grace is true, you must bear a true and not a fictitious sin. God does not save people who are only fictitious sinners. Be a sinner and sin boldly, but believe and rejoice in Christ even more boldly, for he is victorious over sin, death, and the world. As long as we are here [in this world] we have to sin. This life is not the dwelling place of righteousness, but, as Peter says, we look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. It is enough that by the riches of God’s glory we have come to know the Lamb that takes away the sin of the world. No sin will separate us from the Lamb, even though we commit fornication and murder a thousand times a day. Do you think that the purchase price that was paid for the redemption of our sins by so great a Lamb is too small? Pray boldly—you too are a mighty sinner. (LW 48:277)

To my mind, the beauty of Luther’s letter is not so much the part about sin, but the part about God’s grace -- a grace that should make us bold to serve Jesus in this world. I hope you can make it to Immanuel this Reformation Sunday. Indeed, I hope you can always make it. It does our heart good to see you.

In Christ,

Pastor Gregory P. Fryer

Music for Reformation Sunday

As always, Immanuel Lutheran Church has glorious music planned for the Reformation Day service, always one of the highlights of our church calendar. We will have brass and tympani, led by our own Jim Miller on trumpet and cornetto, and the choir will sing the great ten-part Omnes Gentes Plaudite by Hans Leo Hassler (c.1564-1612) with brass

accompaniment. During communion, the choir will sing a 20th century masterpiece, i thank You God (e.e. cummings’s spelling) written by the living New York City composer Elliot Levine. Elliot sings at nearby St. Thomas More Church, but we hope that he will join us at coffee hour where we can greet him.

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Special Music for Sunday, October 14th

Violinists Tabea and Esther Frei of Switzerland will perform at our 11 am Mass. They will play selections by Mozart, Bach, and Corelli. Tabea is a graduate of the Lucerne Conservatory of Music, and her older sister

Esther is not only a violinist but also a medical doctor. They are visiting the US as guests of retired physics professor and alternative energy specialist Ernst Bucher, frequent visitor at Immanuel, who will also be at the service.

Sunday School Halloween Party

Sunday, October 28th, during Coffee Hour

Ghosts and goblins beware! The Sunday School will be having their annual Halloween Party during Coffee Hour on Sunday, October 28th. Games and activities will be provided for children. Children (and adults too!) are invited to come in costume! Come join in the fun! The Book of Job – The Question of Human Suffering – New

Class off to a Great Start!

The Bible Study on the Book of Job led by John Wilson is off to a great start. The class has finished the preliminaries and will be studying the first chapter this coming Sunday, October 14. A “special guest” will be making an appearance at that time. The class meets every Sunday at 10 a.m. in the church undercroft. Everyone is welcome!

Block Party

Thank you to Kathy Jolowicz and all her helpers!

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mmanuel’s Block Party roof fund-raiser was a big success. With over 50 vendors and a

great band, the French Cookin’ Blues, together with our resident Piper Duncan, enticing people to dance, the entertainment added to the wonderful day we had. The spots were sold out and we had to turn two vendors away. A special thanks to all of those who came together to make it possible:

Karen Bazik, Priscilla O’Carroll and Barbara Chomko and their wonderful flock of little angels (Kirsten Kibler, Emma O’Carroll, Kieran O’Carroll, Elisa Rajoelson and Katarina Schreiber) put together two spots for the Kid’s market, doubling the sales that the bazaars make. Cliff Rose did a wonderful job selling the raffle tickets under the “supervision” of the little angels. Louise Hansen de Laverde, Elly Spangenberg, Ellie Watrous and Evelyn Junge manned the flea market and jewelry table together with Kathy Jolowicz, and later Debbie Meyer, and had very little left to sell at the end of the day. The book/electronics table was expertly manned by our new member Jazo Ichikawa along with Maggie and Richard Schreiber, Hans Stöhrer (who jumped later to the flea market table) and John Wilson. Heidi Goeb, Kathy’s friend who came in from Long Island, did face painting for the kids while their parents shopped our tables. Our visitors from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Tom and Ryan Clayton, were everywhere lifting and carrying everything heavy and light, supplying masking tape help where needed before, during and after the event. Karen Rombey’s friend, Jim Breen, came and chipped in the whole day too. Our Immanuel Café was manned by Maria Van Der Merwe and Josiane Rajoelson who set up the table with coffee and tea with another new member, Brian Lam, who also baked cookies. Marlene Lund baked brownies, and Ann Wilson appeared with her delicious array of

baked goods. Our resident star bakers, John and Fatima Stevenson, contributed pans of delicious cakes, while a nice lady who saw our ad in “Our Town” came with home-baked cookies too.

Chris Schulze and Luis Cartagena were out early putting up tables and tents, and working with the band supplying their needs for risers and power, as well as power for the coffee/tea urns and tables, chairs and all the serving needs for the Immanuel Café. With Immanuel’s History Panels prepared by Kathy Jolowicz, on display at the door, people were curious about our church and were asking to be allowed to view the interior. Karen Rombey was busy in the office with phone calls, donations, and organizing the administration needed for the Block Party. Of course, Pastor Fryer was also involved working very hard with the heavens and their threat of rain, which resulted in a cloudy, but dry day.

All in all it was a wonderful way that we could work together and get to know each other as well as to get acquainted with the residents within our parish.

Unfortunately we have not yet learned of our total income from the event, because since we can only have a Block Party if approved by the Community Board and then the City, there are fees to be paid. So, we must wait for their invoices. There are also costs for Porta-jons, permits, tents, etc. However, we made $1,284.75 on our 5 tables of the 7 usual Immanuel bazaar tables. However, we still have raffle tickets to sell so we might even have a little more. Thus, the grand total will be determined from the vendors’ rental spots after all our expenses with Clearview Festivals, the City and Immanuel are deducted. Stay tuned! Last but not least, a very special thank you to Kathy Jolowicz for all the hard work she put into organizing this, Immanuel’s first Block Party.

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The Lectionary A note from Pastor Fryer about sermon texts

Our congregation, like many Lutheran congregations across the land, abides by a “lectionary.” That means that we follow the appointed Bible Lessons for the day. Our lectionary is called The Revised Common Lectionary, released in 1994. A lovely thing about this lectionary is that many churches use it, including the Catholic Church. So wherever we travel across the land, we are likely to encounter the same Bible texts. Much of the church, then, is united in meditation upon the same texts. I like the discipline of the lectionary. It asks the preacher to preach on texts that might otherwise be neglected or even shied away from. For example, the appointed lesson for the recent Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost was Mark 10:2-16, which opens with this question, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” Many a pastor would neglect this text if left to his own devices, because the issues are so complex and heartrending, it seems hard to deal with them from the pulpit. But our guest preacher that day, Rev. Russell Saltzman, dutifully preached on the appointed text (and nailed it, in my opinion.) You can read his sermon on our Immanuel website:

http://www.immanuelnyc.org/sermons/20121007_Pentecost_7B_Rev._Russell_Saltzman.pdf Still, there can be exceptions. Evangelical preachers tend to choose their own Bible texts Sunday by Sunday. Ancient preachers, like St. Augustine and St. Chrysostom, would work their way through an entire Gospel, passage by passage. They lingered with the text, and were not hastened on by the pace of a lectionary. As for me, I tend to preach according to the lectionary. When I was young, I feared the three-year lectionary, knowing that I would face the same readings every three years and wondering whether I would have anything else to say once I had already preached on them. Nowadays, I find that to be no problem. The texts seem inexhaustible to me, and I am always glad to give it another try at preaching on a familiar text. But this is what I want to say: If you would like me to preach on one of your favorite Bible stories or passages or on some spiritual topic close to your heart, let me know about that. I consider myself fairly free to depart from the lectionary in order to preach on other Bible stories or topics suggested to you by the Holy Spirit. I bet many preachers would feel the same way.

Immanuel’s Children’s Choir to Sing at Liturgy on

All Saints Sunday 11 am. November 4, 2012

Looking ahead to All Saints Sunday, Immanuel’s Children’s Choir under the direction of Tiffany Rosenquist de La Torre and Jim Miller will be delighting us with their voices during the morning liturgy.

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Artek Concert at St. Ignatius of Antioch Church

552 West End Avenue Friday, October 12, 2012 at 8:00 p.m.

ARTEK, one of the world’s finest early

music ensembles, performs a selection of Monteverdi’s greatest masterpieces from his 1641 collection of sacred music: Selva morale e spirituale. ARTEK’s performance will include the superb Magnificat Primo and Laudate Dominum Secondo for double choir, along with spectacular solos, duets, and trios. The Selva Morale collection is particularly interesting because it contains so many different musical forms, from Italian madrigals and motets to hymns and a complete Mass, and instrumentation ranging from a single voice to a double choir with orchestra. One of the highlights included in ARTEK's program is the rarely heard echo duet Audi Coelum (sometimes called Salve Regina) that is every bit the equal of the similar piece from Monteverdi's Vespers of 1610. This is a rare performance, and not to be missed.

ARTEK, directed by world-renowned organist and early music scholar Gwendolyn Toth, is comprised of some of New York’s finest classical musicians and singers, including sopranos Laura Heimes and Sarah Chalfy, mezzo-soprano Barbara Hollinshead, countertenor Ryland Angel, tenors David Vanderwal and Philip Anderson, baritone Charles Weaver, and bass Peter Becker. Instrumentalists include Theresa Salomon, violin; Vita Wallace, violin; Jessica Troy, viola; Motomi Igarashi, viola da gamba and lirone; Lisa Terry, viola da gamba; Rosamund Morley, violone; Daniel Swenberg, theorbo; Gwendolyn Toth, organ and director. Tickets: Regular seating $40 ($30, students and seniors). Rear seating, $20 ($10 students and seniors). Purchase tickets through Gotham Early Music Scene, online at www.gemsny.org or by phone (212) 866-0468. Tickets also available at the door.

Artek Concert presented by Peak Performances

at Kasser Theater, Montclair, New Jersey Saturday, October 20, at 8:00 p.m.

In I’ll Never See the Stars Again, the lush music of Claudio Monteverdi is re-imagined as an enchanting theater piece. A group of Italian refugees expresses the comedy of love and the despair of betrayal in a series of vignettes. “ARTEK provides a stark reminder of just how rich and passionate, as well as achingly sad, Monteverdi’s music can be.” – The Stage (UK)

ARTEK's 2012 production has been re-imagined by director Paul Peers, with new

scenes, additional music, and staging changes. Mr. Peers, an Australian stage director with extensive theater and opera credits including several baroque operas with Boston Baroque, brings a fresh outlook to the piece, making it even more poignant and memorable.

With Sarah Chalfy, soprano; Barbara Hollinshead, mezzo-soprano; Ryland Angel, countertenor; Philip Anderson, tenor; Michael Brown, tenor; Peter Becker, bass-baritone; Vita Wallace, violin; Motomi Igarashi, viola

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da gamba and lirone; Christa Patton, harp and recorder; Charles Weaver, lute, guitar and theorbo; Daniel Swenberg, theorbo; Gwendolyn Toth, harpsichord and director. All tickets $15 - Tickets for this concert available only from Peak Performances, Montclair State University. Call (973) 655-5112 or visit www.peakperfs.org. The theater

is located on the campus of Montclair State University in Montclair Heights, NJ.

Planning to attend? Peak Performances runs a charter bus to Montclair leaving 90 minutes before the performance from Port Authority. See the Peak Performances website for more information. Bus tickets ($10) must be reserved at the same time as ordering concert tickets through Peak Performances.

Daylight Saving Time

Don’t forget to put your clocks back one hour on Saturday night, November 3rd. An extra hour of sleep before All Saints Sunday!

Pastor Carol Fryer’s Report on Climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro

Some notes from Pastor Gregory Fryer Pastor Carol Fryer, Senior Pastor and Director of Church Relations at The Wartburg Adult Care Community joined us for the liturgy and coffee hour this past Sunday, October 7. She served as Presiding Minister for the liturgy, then wore her new Tanzanian dress to coffee hour to show us her homemade movie about her summertime climb up Mt. Kilimanjaro. The movie lets you see the ascent as if through Carol’s eyes, thanks to the small video camera attached to her headband. Carol and I can lend you a DVD copy of her movie if you missed it at the Coffee Hour. Also, Webmaster Sean Curnyn is working to post that movie on our Immanuel website, so you will soon be able to see it there. Go to our homepage, http://www.immanuelnyc.org, click on the Gallery tab at the top, and scroll down to “Video Clips.” It is not there yet, as of this writing, but soon will be if all goes well. Carol has mountains in her blood, thanks to her birth and early years in Denver, Colorado. Her climb was for the fun of it all and for the Malaria Campaign in Africa. Pastors Carol and Gregory Fryer